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Hall of Fame

So, the Flames acquired Wideman's rights to then sign him to a 5 year deal worth over $25M. Flames management is on drugs, eh? He is excellent on the PP, but otherwise his defensive play is quite porous. Terrible contract.

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NHL

I wonder if this is a sign of desperation on Calgary's part or the new standard for free agent contracts for the silly season about to hit us? Calgary has to start a major rebuild and I would assume they see Wideman as a replacement for Jay Bo. He's a bit cheaper but as a straight addition, wow!!

If Calgary is above Edmonton in the standings this coming year, I will be very surprised.

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NHL

So much for any concern about teams submitting an offer sheet. The deal is reported to be for three years and $12 million. I assumed the numbers would be in this range. If he evolves into the goalie we expect him to be, the long term extension is the next logical step but there's three years to make that decision. This gives Gillis some more breathing room to get a deal done for Luongo. My one fear was that Schneider wouldn't sign until Luongo was dealt.

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2nd Team All-Star

I think the basis of a Luongo deal has been in place conditional on Schneider being re signed and now Gillis will go about touching up that deal ...

The thing a lot of the media who bought into the offer sheet angle didn't understand was how much Luongo and Schneider get along and how much Schneider enjoys playing for Vancouver....

Even though I think the Canucks get the better return in a deal with Florida, a part of me kinda wishes he ends up in Toronto because I think he can get them back into the playoffs and would enjoy seeing him receive the glory that would come with that...

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NHL

It's interesting how the prospective destinations keep changing in terms of ranking. Toronto seemed to be the natural choice and now it appears to be Florida. I firmly believed a deal would have been done at the Draft. When that didn't happen, I assumed early July was the next logical deadline. Now, I think the pressure for Gillis has been reduced significantly. The only way I see a deal done before Sunday is if Garrison's rights are included. That's extremely unlikely. I have no idea who Gillis might be targeting. I don't see anyway Florida would part with Gudbranson. I could see Theodore coming in to compete for the backup role with Lack but other than the free agents, ?????

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2nd Team All-Star

I think it depends on what Gillis is after...Does he want to do the type of deal a rebuilding team does, i.e. picks and prospects or does he want to do a core player for core player type of deal?...

Regarding Toronto and a core for core player type of deal, the problem I see is that both teams are trying to do the same thing which is to get bigger and in particular are in need of a big bodied centreman...Their roster is a non playoff roster and the Canucks are a 2 time defending Presidents Trophy squad, so I don't think there are any roster players the Canucks would want that can replace an existing roster player off the Canucks team....

On the blue line, the obvious player to target would be Gardiner but if the Canucks are able to sign Schultz then he becomes redundant and if the Canucks can sign Schultz and Garrison then he becomes a player the Canucks may want to flip, especially considering the Canucks have Connauton in the system who is close to making the jump and who is a similar player with more offensive upside...

Hockey's Future thinks the Leafs prospects pool has depth but lacks blue chip prospects so not sure which kids would be of interest to Gillis if he wants to do a pick and prospect type of deal...

With the Panthers, I think it would be all about prospects which means the Canucks will want to wait till they learn if they were the lottery winner with Schultz ...There are a number of blue chip prospects in the Florida system, so it should be easier for Tallon to let some of them go without feeling it in the same way a team like Toronto would....

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NHL

Somehow I think Talon would want to remove some salary as well. What I've been looking for is a contract that they might want to move out that could make them amenable to taking back Ballard. He had more success there than he has in Vancouver so maybe they would want him back. Like you said, so much depends on how well the Canucks do in the free agent defenseman pool, particularly as it effects Ballard's role. He's way too expensive to be on the third pairing.

You have to think that the Canucks are not going to go into the season with Schroeder as the only option for the second line centre position. One name that has just popped into the mix is Jokinen. It would be interesting to see what kind of offense he could produce with our second line wingers, particularly after Kesler returns. Wouldn't that make Canuck-Flames games interesting? Might be worth it just for that drama alone.

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NHL

It's probably what's going to happen. I just think there should always be an alternative in the system. That's why I think the Canucks would be wise to take Theodore back if they do make a deal with Florida. Lack should be fine but do we get back into the situation where Schneider gets over worked during the season? Having a veteran that you can rely on for 30 games if necessary makes more sense.

Everything I hear is that the Canucks are focused on doing whatever is necessary to challenge for the Cup this year (maybe they buy in to the closing window of opportunity theory). That flies in the face of one of their other objectives of working more of their prospects into the lineup. It's hard to do both in the same year.

I am getting a kick out of how the writers from the teams out of the Schultz marathon are trashing the whole process. Maybe we'd feel the same way if his camp indicated the Canucks were no longer on his list.

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2nd Team All-Star

As a fan of one of the teams in the league who help pay the salaries of those Panther prospects, I'd suggest you drop the attitude!

When a team is bleeding red ink all bets are off...

When I look at the rosters of the Leafs and the Panthers, I think the Leafs have a better roster but the Panthers were fortunate to play in a very weak division last year and I don't think that will be the case this season...

The Leafs would want Luongo to get them into the playoffs while the Panthers need Luongo to help sell tickets and get them into the playoffs....

When we use that saying "if Gretzky can be traded", we have to remember that he was dealt for money issues to Los Angeles so if a Panther prospect being traded is what is needed to put money into the pockets of the owners, then that's what they will do....

Regarding the $9 million in salaries to the Canucks goaltenders, they paid just over $6 million last season and the cap has gone up, so what's the problem?...The Canucks have pretty much a fully signed roster so they are in very good shape cap wise and have one of the best, if not the best capologist's in the game so I wouldn't worry about that...

Regarding the Luongo contract, Dennis Wideman just signed for $26 million over 5 years, the same cap hit as Luongo...When Luongo signed his deal the up roar was that it violated the spirit of the CBA which hurt teams like Florida and the final 4 or 5 years were just put on to bring the annual cap hit down because he would retire before he played for a million per season....

Fast forward to today and everybody says it an unmovable contract because of those final years because he will be in his early 40's before it ends....Well Martin Brodeur has sure generated a lot of buzz over being available to one of those teams in search of a goalie and on this board we read from a Leaf fan who thinks he can get their team into the post season...

He is in his 40's...

If Toronto misses out on Luongo and misses out on the playoffs, then I think everybody will agree that it would end Burkey's time in Toronto...

If Florida misses out on Luongo and misses out on the playoffs and continues to lose money then that would be a bigger worry for the league and a Panther fan....

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Hall of Fame

Panthers ownership is very rich, and yes they need to continue to lose as less money as possible, but bringing back Luongo doesn't mean anything in terms of exciting the fan base. The majority of the fan base actually DOES NOT want Luongo back, at all. When the Panthers win, and they make the playoffs, the result is a much fuller stadium.

Toronto's roster better than Florida's?

I think i'd pick Florid'as 11-12 defense and goaltending over Toronto's 11-12 defense and goaltending any day. Florida had more talent overall with Weiss, Fleischmann, Versteeg, Goc, Samuelsson, Kopecky, and Bergenheim rather than a fragile group of Connolly, Lupul, Lombardi, Armstrong, and the main stars being Kessel and Grabovski.

Panthers played a weaker division, yes, but they also won more points against the other EC teams than Toronto.

The Panthers managed to sell tickets without Luongo. The point is winning, no matter who is on the team.

If Nucks fans think that they are going to get a quality deal in a trade for Luongo then they are kidding themselves.

Also, the tandem for the Nucks in terms of salaries will be over $10M. All they need is a reliable back-up for Schneider, not a back up making $6.7M plus a year.

Gillis is trying to be cool about it, but he knows he has to trade Luongo. No owner wants to pay that much money for a player that does not want to play for his team.

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NHL

I love it when you two do your Brian Burke imitations. I don't know what is going to happen tomorrow but I do know what I would like to happen and that is another Florida-Canuck deal of some sort. I thought you might enjoy Ian Esplen's views on the topic. I discount the Canuck Offer Sheet component but there may well be a nucleus of the truth in this article. The one thing I very much agree with in Rikster's post is that as the extensions begin falling into place this year, Luongo's contract has taken on a different hue. As we've been saying all along, it's not a 10-year contract at all. Dan Murphy was on Hockey Central on Sportsnet yesterday and he firmly believes that Luongo will retire after 5 but no more than 6 years. At $5.2 million compared to some of the new numbers, not so bad a deal after all. It's also interesting that there has been a rush to get these long term deals in place before the new CBA takes effect. I'm a little bit surprised that Schneider didn't get one but until he substantiates what they expect from him, that would have been a huge risk. In his case, a 5-year deal the next time around won't be a problem assuming he has proven himself.

Something else I've found interesting is with all the hoola surrounding Schultz, there really hasn't been that much said about Garrison. His comments about wanting to play in Vancouver get mentioned once in a while or they have been meaningless. We haven't even addressed those possibilities ourselves so where he will wind up has really dropped off of the radar. The one indication that the Canucks have some optimism that they will get at least one of them is their not offering new contracts to Rome and Gragnani. There are jobs available so they must have some idea who they feel they will be bringing in to compete for them. There is talk of bringing Salo back to finish his career which I think is great but that still leaves two more slots. Just for argument's sake, if they were successful in getting both, you would have to think that others would be moved out. Ballard is the logical choice but would they consider moving Edler to try and get the power forward they so desperately need? T'will be interesting.

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1st Team All-Star

I love what the B's have done. Everyone who has contributed meaningfully over the last 2 seasons is back and locked up for at least 2 more seasons.

Chia-Pet has said that he wants to add 1 established veteran forward, who has a couple good years left in the tank, via trade or FA. Very much believed that he has 3 main targets in mind...Iginla, Doan, and Ray Whitney.

Bruins have plenty of cap space to play with. They never placed Marc Savard on LTIR last season, so they have 5 mil more due to his situation that they can play with, in addition to the 4-5 mil they alreay have available.

The defense is all set with the 6-tet of Chara, Seidenberg, Ference, Boychuk, McQuaid and Doug Hamilton.

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NHL

Now that the decision has finally been made and Schultz won't be coming to the Canucks, I wonder what effect this will have on their blue line plans. Garrison may well have become defensive priority one with that decision. I had heard previously that he still wanted to come home (so much for that influence) but that the Canucks were concerned they wouldn't be able to afford him. Schultz's Cap Hit wasn't going to be an over-riding deterrent but the amount of ice time available for the revised top six to share certainly would have been. There is also talk out of Finland that the Canucks and Salo aren't close on a contract so that really opens up a slot big time if that deal isn't completed either. I guess we'll find out what plan non-Schultz will be in less than a day.

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Hall of Fame

You're not going to see Steeger or Kulikov in a deal. At least, definitely not Versteeg. If Kulikov is involved then Vancouver needs to give another player in the deal of good quality.

An offer sheet? No one really does offer sheets, but if Gillis is that stupid to do one for either player then so be it. Tallon loves draft picks as well. Probably he would match Versteeg's, but he'd let Kulikov go through an offer-sheet. The Panthers have enough defensive depth in the system.

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NHL

I agree that an offer sheet isn't in the cards. I also agree that there will be more involved when the deal transpires. The addition of Garrison makes a move involving Ballard more likely, not necessarily to Florida but they could look at that option. Another possibility is Raymond. I have a hard time seeing where he would fit next year with the Canucks. Versteeg, Theodore and Upshall for Luongo and one of the two mentioned? Reaction?

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NHL

It took a heck of a long time but I am happy with both the additions and subtractions so far. I am happy for Salo. Nice final contract before heading into retirement. He was going to get that much in Vancouver and his departure pretty much paid for Garrison. Now if Gillis can get the deal done with Florida tomorrow (we can hope, can't we), then we will have a pretty good idea what this year's version will look like.

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MVP

Lord only knows why the wheels fell off in Toronto last year, they are a better team than their record indicates.
Personally I will be more ticked off if Burke sells the farm for Louingo. Elite player, perhaps, but with the luck the Leafs have, he will end up struggling and the Leafs will have been better off to have kept their assets.

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Hall of Fame

Versteeg is not on the table. He has a very good relationship with Tallon and he "found a home" coming here.

Ballard is not considered, at all. I liked the guy, love his elegant skating, but he seems like he just does not know how to put a string of good games together.

Panthers got a gap filler in Kuba, that's a decent replacement for Garrison. I think Vancouver should be honored that Garri took less to go where he is from, but the six year part of the deal? Atrocious.

Raymond is intriguing, but is questionable.

Florida may be looking at Brodeur as well. If not, then it's not like goaltending is a MUST-do issue to address. Theodore-Clemmensen is a good tandem and Markstrom is a great call up in case of injuries. So Tallon would obviously want to improve the goaltending, but i don't think it's at the top of his list at the moment. Luongo would be a great addition, but he doesn't score goals either.

Luongo to Florida for Upshall, Skille, Santorelli, Theodore. Take it or leave it

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Hall of Fame

Honestly? I just wouldn't do it if i were Burke. Like i said a while ago, why would Luongo be any better going from bad to worse? Vancouver has been an elite team and he couldn't deal with the pressure and the aggressive media and fans. Toronto is a struggling team and it's the kind of team that the media and the fans are looking to point fingers at anyone.

Yet, maybe Carlyle works some magic, gets this team on the same page to play a good, responsible system, and Luongo leads them to the playoffs. Still, use the money and cap space on bigger and more helpful players for the near future.

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2nd Team All-Star

I heard the number .954 being Luongo's career save percentage at even strength in the playoffs....

At age 40, Brodeur just signed a 2 year deal at $4.5 per....

The same Brodeur who lost the starting job at the Vancouver Olympics, and I think we can all agree the pressure at those Olympics for the Canadian team was immense.....

The same Brodeur who had a poor regular season and who had a good playoffs until they got to the finals where he struggled...

So, how does the Luongo contract look now?...

Now the rumours are circulating that the Canucks are making a play for Nash, wonder if that is a pressure tactic against the Leafs and Panthers or if that is really the team they want to deal with for Luongo?...

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2nd Team All-Star

Until the Leafs get a bonafide number 1 who can steal games, the Leafs will always be in a position where it appears they are under performing....

Under Carlyle and with the roster the Leafs have, I'm guessing the Leafs will play like the Nucks did in Luongo's first year in Vancouver...

That year, Luongo put the team on his shoulder and dragged them into the playoffs where they gave the Ducks all they could handle....I think he had one game in those playoffs where he stopped over 50 shots ..The Canucks played a dumb it down system until they could gradually bring more offensive players to the team and then they went to a more run and gun system...

Do Leaf fans think either of Reimer or Scrivens can duplicate what Luongo did in those early years in Vancouver?, because I think that is what they will need to get back into the playoffs....

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NHL

For a healthy Salo, I agree. He's a gem. Unfortunately, all of those injuries have really started to slow him down. His minutes were on a steady decline, particularly in the last couple of months. His shot is still great though and with power play time, he's going to continue to rack up points. It will be interesting to see if Connauton winds up on the Canuck power play of if they try Garrison there. In any case, Salo was the most respected Canuck and he will be missed.

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NHL

With some of the contracts handed out yesterday and most likely today as well, his contract is looking more and more reasonable in terms of Cap Hit and what he brings to the table. I was jumping back and forth between TSN and Sportsnet yesterday to get their perspective on why he hasn't moved as yet. The vast majority of the opinions expressed in the different panels projected that he wouldn't continue to play beyond five years, six at the most at which point he would retire. None of the "experts" foresaw him playing late in his thirties or early forties for a take home pay of $1 million. That's the same point Rikster has been making all along.

Regarding Luongo's personality, there's an entirely new side of that which has come to light due to his Twitter alter ego. Check out @strombone1. This is a side he hasn't shown publicly enough and it's amazing the impact his interaction with his fans has changed their perspective of him.

Happy belated Canada Day and an early Best Summer Movies Day otherwise known as Independence Day.

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NHL

I guess when you consider the money that Garrison left on the table to come to Vancouver, the six-year term was probably necessary to get the deal done. I am a bit concerned that part of the reason he signed in Vancouver apparently was his friendship for Mason Raymond. I guess we will have to take him out of the previous deal, at least for the next week until Garrison settles in. What's the history of his wearing 52? A very unusual choice for a defenceman. Hopefully it isn't his IQ!!!

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MVP

I think they over paid for him. One great year at 29 yrs if age should not a millionaire make...I hope he works out for them.
Sports net says the Leafs are in the hunt for Bobby Ryan...as much as his talent is undeniable, where does he play? Lupus isn't moving, neither is JVR...should be interesting.

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NHL

When you look at all the contracts handed out yesterday, that was par for the course. I guess if you don't want to pay, don't play is the motto. The part that blows me away is that he left substantial money on the table to come home to BC.

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MVP

While that is true, I'd have given more money to the Devil I knew, not the Devil I didn't. Too much money for a one year wonder. As I say, I hope he continues his rise, and he should with the Sedins on the powerplay, but I think these GM's are whacked to give someone that isn't proven such a big contract.
Aren't these types of contracts the reason the lockout happened?

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MVP

...a lot of money for a guy who hasn't really established himself. I hope he lights it up for Calgary...I'm tired of seeing the Flames suck! They're going to get the scoring and such straightened away, then they'll need a new goalie!

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Hall of Fame

I think Salo is, at least when healthy, a better all-rounded d-man than Garrison. I like the addition by Tampa with Salo, would have liked him on the Panthers, but i don't see how adding two aging d-men in two off-season helps them.

Garrison will score 12 goals, at least, as a Canuck. I mean, i think he has to with that kind of contract (salary is not that bad, but six years makes it terrible).

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NHL

The Canuck power play has been consistently near the top of the League (except in the playoffs when it counted unfortunately). If Garrison gets first unit minutes with the Sedins, I think his point total will be higher than what you are projecting. If his shot is anywhere near as effective as we've been led to believe, I am sure that's what they have in mind for him.

A younger Salo would have made the acquisition of Garrison far less of a priority. The needed a top four and Salo was simply no longer capable of filling that slot.

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Hall of Fame

It's Jagr, it's a fair salary and for the Stars all they get a star name to sell and helps them reach the cap floor and possibly make him a trade target come February. Still, Joey was a heck of a player, but he's been a terrible GM in Dallas.

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Hall of Fame

He is good defensively. Murphy did a heck of a job with him. It's a shame he showed zero loyalty what so ever, though. But, he was free to do as he pleased. I still would have never signed him to six years, though. He'll be solid in Vancouver, you will like him. He's such a nice guy too.

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NHL

As a former Math teacher, I love this stuff. Now if someone could teach me how to speak Geek so I can translate a bunch of stuff that applies to a PC so that they apply to my Mac, I will die a happy man.

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2nd Team All-Star

The thing I've noticed with the advent of social media and twitter in particular is how lazy and mis informed the mainstream sports media are...

In their rush to be the first, they ignore due dilegence and make comments before they have had a chance to do some research and then have to back track as facts are brought to the discussion....

Regarding Garrison, how many of these types bought into the "he's had only 1 good year" angle and would be surprised to learn the players historical performance as outlined by the article you or I posted?...

I don't mind term anymore, and expect there to be a lot of out cry from many in the mainstream media when the Parise and Suter contracts are announced...

In some ways, this may be Burke's biggest mistake in Toronto...His stance on what he considers cap circumvention contracts is mis guided bordering on dumb and makes me wonder who the capologist is in Toronto?

The league has proven itself to be an inflationary league since the lockout....I'm assuming Burke was banking on the leagues revenues being static when he made his decision to stay away from long term contracts ..

The Luongo contract and others like it pay the player for the expected production as the player ages thru the contract...Why should Luongo be paid $5.3 million when he is 40 and likely in a back up role? His actual dollars paid out in those later years reflect his diminished skills ...

Long term contracts lock the teams cost and give it protection from inflation....In hindsight, wouldn't New Jersey and Nashville wish they could have signed Parise and Suter for a contract 10 years longer than they did when those players signed their last contract with their former teams?...

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NHL

You knew this sort of dialogue was going to take place in terms of the negotiating process. Using Luongo as an example, I said when he first went on the market there would be a lot of sweet lemons and sour grapes comments being made all as part of determining the eventual price. It happens between teams and players in the arbitration process which often drives an irreversible wedge between the two. Now it is there with potential free agents. As long as there's a chance that a player might come to your team of choice there's a ton of meaningless spin which occurs before the fact, immediately followed by the mirror image kinds of debate as to why we are just as glad we didn't get said player when he decides to sign elsewhere. I give Gillis and Gillman full marks in this regard with their comments regarding Schultz and Salo. That's not as common a trend as their should be unfortunately.

The driving force in so much of the social media structure is a sense of entitlement that has become so common place. "It's our right to know", attitude followed by indignance when the powers that be exercise their responsibility in terms of the tampering provisions of the League. The two don't work harmoniously and we shouldn't be surprised. Eklund can throw out star ratings and people get all excited and don't see the difference between that and the output of those in the media who are as close to being informed and up to date as anyone. As you pointed out, the line between those two groups has faded into obscurity. At least I find monitoring Eklund and his ilk as well as Twitter fun but as a hard source of information, um, maybe not.

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MVP

Ya - come on Garrison - show loyalty and get paid $3 million a season to play in Florida! Come on, everybody's doing it!

Quite simply, Florida couldn't afford to pay him market value or he would have stayed there. They are a small budget team and didn't have room for him - so don't blame Garrison for that. He took less money (was offered $5.5 per season elsewhere) to play in Van so obviously the money wasn't everything to him.

On the 6 year term, it's probably a year longer than I would have liked but the guy is only 27 - when he finished the contract he'll be 33. That's not exactly old at all.

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Hall of Fame

The guy just wanted to bolt to Vancouver, but i think he showed zero loyalty to a team that gave him a chance as an undrafted player and developed him. He never had any intention to re-sign. It does upset me a bit, but six years? No thanks. Good luck in Vancouver Garri! We'll miss you.